Frances R. Lax Fund for Faculty Development
Frances R. Lax Fund for Faculty Development
Frances R. Lax Fund for Faculty Development
About the Fund
Thanks to the generosity of Dr. Frances R. Lax, the Frances R. Lax Fund for Faculty Development provides stipends to probationary, full-time, tenure-track faculty who are in their second year of service to Rowan University on the Glassboro campus. The purpose of this funded award is to enable early career faculty to support their own professional development related to teaching, scholarly and creative activity, and/or contributions to the wider professional community by connecting with and learning from colleagues.
Deadline for 2026-2027 is October 31, 2026.
About Frances R. Lax
Frances R. Lax was a well-known Southern New Jersey philanthropist, community leader and voter rights activist. In 1980, Fran joined the then-Glassboro State College Board of Directors. Thanks to her dedication, what was once a small development fund grew into the thriving Rowan University Foundation. During her tenure on the Foundation Board, Fran held the positions of chair and vice chair. She was instrumental in assisting the institution in its receipt of the historic Rowan Gift and also headed the renovation of the Hollybush Mansion. At the University, Fran established this fund for faculty development and a fund for scholarships in the fine and performing arts. The University honored Dr. Lax with an honorary doctorate in humanities in 1999.
Grant Information
Eligibility
- Full-time tenure-track faculty or librarians
- Pre-tenure
- In second (2nd) year of service to Rowan University on the Glassboro campus
All eligible individuals are encouraged to apply. If you are not sure if you meet the eligibility criteria, please contact the Faculty Center, facultycenter@rowan.edu, for guidance.
Award Amount and Details
- The application process is expected to be competitive, with a maximum of 13 award recipients each year.
- Each award amount is $1000 per recipient, via a Rowan account in the recipient’s name, which they manage themselves.
- There is no option to split an award between individuals.
Use of Funds
Funds can be used for professional development activities, including:
*IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT TRAVEL: If the award is to be used for travel, requests must be made through Concur, and standard approval processes must be followed. All trips must be approved by the appropriate Dean. Forms must be submitted, both in advance of the trip and following the trip, for reimbursement to occur, and funds must be used within the University-wide travel reimbursement policies and procedures. It is permissible to make a PURCHASE (such as an airline ticket or conference registration) before June 30, and then USE it after June 30 (i.e., you purchase an airline ticket in May for a flight in July), but travel must be completed within University Travel deadlines.
- Registrations: conference, workshop
- Academic Travel*: conference, workshop, collaboration with research teams
- Professional memberships (unless it is required for or folded into conference registration)
- Travel for data collection for independent research (without a research team)
- Software/hardware purchase
- Data purchase
- Hired services: transcription, editing
- Other research-related expenses: participant stipend
*IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT TRAVEL: If the award is to be used for travel, requests must be made through Concur, and standard approval processes must be followed. All trips must be approved by the appropriate Dean. Forms must be submitted, both in advance of the trip and following the trip, for reimbursement to occur, and funds must be used within the University-wide travel reimbursement policies and procedures. It is permissible to make a PURCHASE (such as an airline ticket or conference registration) before June 30, and then USE it after June 30 (i.e., you purchase an airline ticket in May for a flight in July), but travel must be completed within University Travel deadlines.
Application Process
- Complete the Frances R. Lax Fund for Faculty Development 2025-2026 Proposal Template.
- Follow the instructions in the template for submission and submit by October 31, 2025.
- Submit the document via the Google form: Application for Frances R. Lax Fund for Faculty Development Grant 2025-26.
Timeline for the Use of Funds
- Each recipient will receive their $1000 fund in January.
- All $1000 must be spent by June 30 of the same year. The June 30 deadline is firm and is not controlled by the Faculty Center.
- It is permissible to purchase something up to three (3) months before the award money is placed into your account and then reimburse yourself (or your department).
Previous Winners
Updated 11/3/25